How to prune gooseberries

1. Prune during dormancy

Dormant pruning refers to pruning when the gooseberries sprout in spring. Each gooseberry bush will have 16 to 20 basal branches, which are basically formed after 3 to 4 years. They are planted when they are still seedlings, and then pruned again in the spring of the first year with about 4 buds left.

In the same year, select 4 to 5 stronger basal branches. After 2 to 4 years, leave 4 to 5 basal branches that grow better and stronger, and then you will form a forest of 3 to 5 plants with 1 to 4-year-old basal branches.

After leaving sixteen to twenty old basal branches, you should cut off several four-year-old old basal branches that grow slowly and are not particularly strong from its base every year. When cutting these, you should also leave about five new basal branches as supplements. Branches that are severely drooping, too dense, or sick or infested with insects should be cut off in time.

2. Prune in summer

Pruning in summer means choosing to prune during the growing season. Generally, the most suitable season is around the time when the flowers fall. 7 to 8 basal branches should be left for each gooseberry plant.

Generally, pruning is done in summer to remove those branches that are not growing well, are too dense, are sick, dry and dead, have insects, or some old branches. This will allow new branches to grow quickly.

The temperature and climate in summer are also suitable for pruning its branches, so no matter which method is used for pruning, the good ones should be kept and the bad ones should be removed.

This is the most fundamental purpose of pruning, so there are basically only these two methods for pruning currants. All for the purpose of enabling it to grow better.